Battle Creek NAACP prepared to protest Kohl's

The Battle Creek NAACP is preparing to protest at an area Kohl's store after it failed to apologize to its customers for a racially charged message that played over its loudspeaker last month.

NAACP of Battle Creek President Carey Whitfield said Wednesday the protest could happen as early as late September or early October after reaching out to the NAACP national office for approval. Whitfield said he's also planning to again contact Kohl's, who confirmed the incident to the Enquirer last week, to ask if they are certain they do not want to apologize.

A company spokesperson said the usage of "hateful language" was "shocking and sad," but stopped short of accepting responsibility for it.

"Originally, they had stated they did not want to draw out the issue," he said. "I just don’t feel very comfortable in accepting that message. That’s what it originally was. I am disappointed with the fact they don’t seem to fully understand that an apology is warranted."

A police report obtained this week by the Enquirer shows the incident happened about 8:50 p.m. Aug. 5. Kohl's manager Thomas Winchel told Emmett Township officers he was working at a cash register when he heard a page over the intercom calling for an employee named Rita. He said he noticed it because he doesn't have any employees by that name.

Winchel said he continued to ring up customers when he heard another announcement about 10 minutes later, reportedly saying, "Two niggers for the price of one."

He told officers that he summoned another employee to his register to go look for the person who made the announcement. The store's loss prevention department located the person on the store's cameras and he was stopped before leaving the store. Winchel said he is unable to detain anyone within the store and he had not dealt with other incidents of this nature.

Winchel said he received several complaints about the incident, as well as a call from the Battle Creek NAACP, and he was advised to contact the authorities.

Battle Creek Police officers were later able to identify the person who made the announcements, a 19-year-old man, and another man who was with him from photos provided by Kohl's and the Emmett Township Department of Public Safety. The man was contacted through Emmett's RMS system. He met with investigators Aug. 10 and confirmed he made the announcement over the loudspeaker. According to the police report, the man explained to officials "his definition of the word" and advised that he is one-quarter black.

The man said he "meant no harm" and if he had caused harm, he "was sorry." On Aug. 30, he reportedly met with NAACP of Battle Creek President Carey Whitfield and Jorge Zeballos, executive director of Kellogg Community College's Center for Diversity and Innovation, and agreed to attend some diversity training.

The case remains open, but Emmett Township's Department of Public Safety said in the report it agreed "it would no longer be involved in this matter."

Whitfield said he has been satisfied with the man's willingness to work with him and Zeballos and that he's thus far fulfilled obligations spelled out during their meeting with him. He said the man will undergo the sensitivity training. He's also been enlisted to help prepare the chapter's Black History Month event schedule.

However, Whitfield said he wished Kohl's would show the same resolve.

"Had they done the apology at the time it occurred, it would be over. But they didn’t," he said. "It’s kind of like having an activity at your home and someone comes in and insults all of your guests. I would feel compelled to apologize to the guests who were insulted because it was my event. I’d use that as a parallel to what happened.

"This is their store and they invited the people. Why do they feel like they do not owe them an apology?"

Kohl's did not immediately return a reporter's request for comment Wednesday.

Contact Dillon Davis at 269-966-0698 or dwdavis@battlecreekenquirer.com. Follow him on Twitter: @DillonDavis